Daily Prayer, 2nd Tuesday in Eastertide
OPENING SENTENCES
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth. (Psalm 124:8)
Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4)
Praise the Lord,
The Lord’s name be praised.
O God and Father of the risen Christ, in whose resurrection we receive new life: Send your Spirit to dwell among us in this time of prayer and worship.
O risen Christ, Son of the Father, may we hear your word of peace today.
O Spirit of the living God, teach us once more to live in the power of Christ’s resurrection, in whose name we make all our prayers. AMEN.
THE GLORIA PATRI
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. AMEN.
THE PSALMS
Psalm 146
Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Put not your trust in princes,
in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
on that very day his plans perish.
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faith forever;
who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free;
the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the sojourners;
he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
The Lord will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 66
To the choirmaster. A Song. A Psalm.
Shout for joy to God, all the earth;
sing the glory of his name;
give to him glorious praise!
Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.
All the earth worships you
and sings praises to you;
they sing praises to your name.” Selah
Come and see what God has done:
he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.
He turned the sea into dry land;
they passed through the river on foot.
There did we rejoice in him,
who rules by his might forever,
whose eyes keep watch on the nations—
let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah
Bless our God, O peoples;
let the sound of his praise be heard,
who has kept our soul among the living
and has not let our feet slip.
For you, O God, have tested us;
you have tried us as silver is tried.
You brought us into the net;
you laid a crushing burden on our backs;
you let men ride over our heads;
we went through fire and through water;
yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.
I will come into your house with burnt offerings;
I will perform my vows to you,
that which my lips uttered
and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.
I will offer to you burnt offerings of fattened animals,
with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;
I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah
Come and hear, all you who fear God,
and I will tell what he has done for my soul.
I cried to him with my mouth,
and high praise was on my tongue.
If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,
the Lord would not have listened.
But truly God has listened;
he has attended to the voice of my prayer.
Blessed be God,
because he has not rejected my prayer
or removed his steadfast love from me!
THE PSALM PRAYER
O Lord, to who all glory and honor belong: Make your marvelous works known throughout the whole earth, so that the force of your power may bring down your enemies and ours. And also grant to your people, that we may be so settled by the afflictions that you send to us that we may never cease to praise your mercy and goodness, which is abundantly revealed to us in your dear Son Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. AMEN.
THE OLD TESTAMENT LESSON
A reading from Daniel 2:1-16
In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him. Then the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. So they came in and stood before the king. And the king said to them, “I had a dream, and my spirit is troubled to know the dream.” Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.” The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins. But if you show the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. Therefore show me the dream and its interpretation.” They answered a second time and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show its interpretation.” The king answered and said, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time, because you see that the word from me is firm— if you do not make the dream known to me, there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the times change. Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation.” The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can meet the king’s demand, for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean. The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”
Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. So the decree went out, and the wise men were about to be killed; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them. Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. He declared to Arioch, the king’s captain, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel. And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king.
THE EPISTLE LESSON
A reading from 1 John 2:1-11
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.
Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
THE GOSPEL LESSON
A reading from John 17:12-19
Jesus continued is prayer, saying, “While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.”
THE MIDDAY PRAYERS
I will bless the Lord at all times.
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
Christ is risen from the dead,
by death he has trampled down death,
and upon those in the tombs
he has bestowed life!
Holy God,
holy and mighty,
holy and immortal,
have mercy on us.
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. AMEN.
O Lord, hear our prayer;
And let our cry come to you.
Let us pray:
Tuesday Prayers
Almighty God, who has brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the glorious Prince of salvation, with everlasting victory over hell and the grave: Grant unto us power, we beseech you, to rise with him to newness of life, that we may overcome the world with the victory of faith, and have part at last in the resurrection of the just; through the merits of this same risen Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end.
Lord our God, true Sun of the world, evermore rising, and never going down; who by your most wholesome appearing and light nourishes and makes joyful all things both in heaven and on earth: We beseech you to shine with mercy and favor into our hearts. Drive away the night and darkness of sin, and the mists of error on every side, that we may all our life long go without any stumbling or offense, and may walk as in the daytime, pure and clean from the works of darkness and abounding in all good works which you have prepared for us to walk in; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
God of grace, we offer our prayers for the needs of others and commit ourselves to serve them even as we have been served in Jesus Christ our Redeemer. Especially we pray for:
- those close to us, our family, friends, neighbors…
- refugees and homeless men, women, and children…
- the outcast and those who are in prison for conscience sake…
- those from whom we are estranged…
- the Church in Africa…
God, our creator, you have given us work to do and have called us to use our talents for the good of all. Guide us as we work, and teach us to live in the Spirit who made us your sons and daughters, in the love that made us sisters and brothers, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Almighty God, you are a very present help in time of trouble: Do not let the heart of your people fail when tribulations, trials, or temptations come, but rather sustain and comfort them until these present troubles are past.
Holy and mighty Lord, who turned back the angel of the plague from the dwellings of your people: We beseech you to hear our cry for those who are suffering and dying under this present pestilence. In your mercy give understanding and sound judgment to those called to make decisions of public policy; bless the means which are used to stay the spread of sickness; strengthen those who labor to heal and comfort the afflicted; support those who are in pain and distress; speedily restore those who have been brought low; and unto all who are beyond healing in this life, grant your heavenly consolation and your saving grace. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.
THE DISMISSAL
O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
For his steadfast love endures forever!
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore. AMEN.